Spain is in a state of constitutional turmoil, with the countrys Prime Minister, mariano rajoy, announcing that hes dissolving catalonias parliament and calling snap Regional Elections. It follows a vote by the Catalan Parliament to declare independence from spain. Mr rajoy said the unprecedented imposition of direct rule was essential to restore normality. Hes also sacked catalonias separatist leader, carles puigdemont, and his cabinet. Crowds have remained in central barcelona late into the night, in a defiant show of support for independence. Our first report is from our europe editor katya adler, whos in barcelona. Si, si, si. One by one the yes votes were counted, celebrated, relished by this delirious Pro Independence crowd. As they watched the Catalan Parliament finally after weeks, some here say years, of waiting, vote on separation from spain. We want the republic. Do you believe it will happen today . Yes. It has to be today. And today it was. All around here catala ns are singing their National Anthem, the National Anthem they now believe belongs to their independent republic, separate from the spanish state. There are so many questions. What will the Spanish Government now do . But for now, this crowd just wants to celebrate. Its a long time we are waiting for this moment, we deserve this. Lam crying are you happy . Very, very. But anxiety soon spread amongst all the euphoria as the what next began to weigh heavy on peoples minds. A catalan republic had been declared, but not in everyones name. Many here dont want independence. Just around the corner we found this man waving a spanish flag. Translation im not happy, im not represented, the catalan people as a whole didnt vote. Translation its disastrous, the result of an extended manipulation which does not reflect the will of the catalan people. But nothing today was going to stop the catalan president savouring his moment in history. From the Catalan Parliament he spoke of his emotions, but also of his conviction that declaring Catalan Independence was the right thing to do, the legitimate thing to do, he said. Hardly the view of the Spanish Government in madrid, which is fuming. The Public Prosecutor here says hell be filing charges of rebellion against the catalan president. At the very same time the Catalan Parliament voted on independence today, the Spanish Senate gave the green light to Mariano Rajoys government to sack the catalan leadership and bring the reins of power back to madrid. This is the first time in modern spanish history that one of the countrys autonomous regions has had its powers stripped away. Tonight, after an emergency cabinet meeting, the spanish Prime Minister explained why. Translation normality starts with law. In order to return institutional legitimacy and to give a voice to all catalans, i have now dissolved the Catalan Parliament in order to hold Regional Elections on the 21st of december. But what mr rajoy didnt explain was how he intends to impose direct madrid rule on the hundreds of thousands of catalans who reject it. Tonight, independence supporters in barcelona are celebrating with abandon their brand new republic with no power and little recognition, dancing on the edge of a precipice. Katya adler, bbc news, barcelona. The decision by the Catalan Parliament to declare independence is being condemned by leaders across europe. The European Commission president Jean Claude Juncker said it was important to avoid any splits in the bloc of european nations. Catalonia has long had a fractious relationship with madrid, but things have been brought to a head by the referendum earlier in the month. Support for a tough stance against Catalan Independence. Many spaniards, like their government, see the move to break away as illegal. So theyve begun flying the National Flag here to show theyre backing for a United Country and for madrids move to take control in catalonia. Natividad told me the separatists should be in prison for their move. This man still hoped the crisis could be sorted so catalonia stays with spain. His friends are from all over the country. But catalan separatism has deep roots. The regions push for autonomy was a key trigger for the civil war and general francos repression was brutal. Granting autonomy was part of spains return to democracy. Now, at least temporarily, madrid is imposing control. After securing support from the senate, spains government moved quickly into a crisis meeting to decide its next steps. Imposing direct rule over catalonia is an unprecedented move and one with unseen consequences, but at this point there seems to be little mood here in madrid for compromise. Tonight the government set out its plan. The Catalan Parliament will be dissolved with new elections on the 21st of december. Catalan ministries, that employ more than 28,000 people, will be run from madrid. The chief of police has been fired with 17,000 members of his police force now overseen by the spanish state. For now, madrid has international backing. The president of the European Commission said spain had made its choice and the eu wont interfere. But on paper, the governments plan is one thing, implementing it in this climate is fraught with risk. There will be more tension and confrontation in the coming days and weeks. Its not a question of will. At a certain point there will be an incident and that could trigger a serious confrontation and nobody knows what will happen. So despite this apparent calm, how the government handles its next move will be critical. The American DefenceMinistry Says america will never accept a nuclear north korea. James mattis spoke after speaking to south korean officials and said any use of Nuclear Weapons against the us or allies would be met with a massive and overwhelming military response. The United States does not accept a nuclear north korea. We have repeatedly emphasised diplomats are most effective when backed by credible military force in this sort of situation. Make no mistake on any attack on the United States or our allies will be defeated. Any use of Nuclear Weapons by the north will be met with a massive military response effective immediately. South africa is in trouble, a young democracy now engulfed by a spectacular corruption scandal. At its heart, allegedly, president jacob zuma and a wealthy family, the guptas, originally from india. It is claimed they used their close ties to win contracts and siphon off huge payments, claims they denied. From south africa, Andrew Harding reports. South africa is in trouble, a young democracy now engulfed by a spectacular corruption scandal. At its heart, allegedly, president jacob zuma and a wealthy family, the guptas, originally from india. Leaked e mails have fuelled claims of a conspiracy to create a parallel shadow state, in order to loot on a grand scale. 0ur concern is the fact that they come into a country like ours, which is a young democracy, and essentially rob us of billions, even hundreds of billions of rands. And thats damaging our democratic project and our credibility as a country. The guptas and president zuma deny any wrongdoing, but the net is widening, fuelling public anger. Global companies have become embroiled in the scandal. The British Pr FirmBell Pottinger is already in ruins after admitting to an inappropriate campaign on behalf of the guptas. The guptas auditors, kpmg, have sacked their top management here. Now comes the news that germanys Software Giant sap is being investigated over claims it pays multi Million Dollar bribes to a gupta linked company. Scotland yard is looking at whether british banks were involved. The fbi has also begun an investigation. Its all prompting some alarming questions. Is president zuma in control of the state, or is there a shadow system that is running appointments, procurements . Is it a mafia state then . Well, it certainly has hallmarks that appear that the accountability is completely eroded. President zuma, may we ask you a question, sir . These days, he almost never gives interviews. Hardly surprising. President zuma is under growing pressure here in south africa. For years hes been shrugging off allegations of corruption, but now International Governments and Foreign Companies are getting involved, making it much harder for this scandal to go away. The allegations are stirring up tension within the governing anc. The chairs flying, as prominent figures warn that mr zuma is wrecking the nation. We are fast approaching that precipice, and it is zuma looting the state with his cronies, and demolishing the capacity of the state. Again, mrzuma insists he has done nothing wrong, but this resilient nation is being tested. Andrew harding, bbc news, south africa. Lets take a look at some of the other stories making the news. Iraqs Prime Minister, haider al abadi, has ordered a 2k hour suspension of military operations against kurdish fighters in the north of the country. Baghdad ordered the offensive in response to the recent vote by kurds for their autonomous region to become an independent country. Clashes between the two sides have left dozens of people dead. Voting in the re run president ial election in kenya has been postponed indefinitely. It had been due to take place in four volatile western counties on saturday, but authorities said the safety threat to electoral workers was too great. An italian man who is hiv positive has been sent to prison for 2h years, after being found guilty of intentionally infecting 30 women through unprotected sex. The court heard Valentino Talluto seduced young women he met through internet dating sites for ten years after knowing he was infected. Surgeons in the indian capital, delhi, have separated twin boys who were conjoined at the tops of their heads. Its the first time the surgery has been attempted in india, from a condition so rare its thought to only occur once in every three million births. Andrew plant reports. A smile from this two year old as his brother plays with a mobile phone. The twins born sharing blood vessels and brain tissue, a condition so rare it affects only one in 3 million births. The operation to separate them has never been attempted in india before. Half of children born with the condition die in the first 2a hours. But after 16 hours of surgery, jaga and kalia were successfully separated, lying individually for the very first time. The team of 30 doctors in delhi say the operation went well. The coming weeks will be critical to see if the twins can survive and thrive, living separate lives. Stay with us on bbc news. Still to come hidden for centuries the 16th century painting obscuring a portrait underneath, believed to be mary queen of scots. Indira gandhi, ruler of the Worlds Largest democracy, died today. Only yesterday shed spoken of dying in the service of her country and said, i would be proud of it, every drop of my blood will contribute to the growth of this nation. After 46 years of unhappiness, these two countries have concluded a chapter of history. No more suspicion, no more fear, no more uncertainty of what each day might bring. Booster ignition and liftoff of discovery, with a crew of six astronaut heroes and one american legend. Well, enjoying the show is right this is beautiful. A milestone in human history. Born today, this girl in india is the 7 billionth person on the planet. This is bbc news. The latest headlines after catalonia declares independence, spains Prime Minister announces tough new measures including sacking the catalan leader, his cabinet and chief of police and new elections. But catalan separatists say the independence vote means they no longerfall under spanishjurisdiction. The us has lifted a range of economic sanctions it imposed on sudan two decades ago. Washington says the government in khartoum has made progress in the areas of Counter Terrorism and human rights. So will sudans economy now be revived . Tomi oladipo has been to khartoum to find out. The ghost of an industry passed seeking a breath of new life. This factory in khartoum was once a thriving plant for edible oil, now a graveyard of sorts. Its one of many factories abandoned across sudan after us sanctions hit the country hard. Local businessmen have been left counting their losses. After the sanctions there was no way to get a pass, no way to export even if you can start manufacturing, everything went down. Complete or total collapse. These problems reflect the isolation this country has suffered. The weight of the us sanctions has left the people of sudan desperate for a turnaround. 19 years ago a us airstrike destroyed a pharmaceutical plant on that side of the claims it contained a chemical weapons factory. This was shortly after the us imposed sanctions on sudan for alleged links to terrorism. Today the state of the site is perhaps a symbol of the rebuilding of relations between the two countries. Sudan remains on the list of state sponsors of terror, but for now the us is giving the Sudanese Government the benefit of the doubt. We want sudan to be a partner and an ally and not an adversary or a negative force. And our engagement has led in that direction. Changes within the regime here have created an opportunity to see how sudan too can help the west achieved its security goals. They seized the chance of the geopolitical changes in the area, the worries of the west from illegal immigration of the worries of the west from terrorism, the west and the americans could see that sudan could be a very good stabilising force. Many students here at the university of khartoum have lived almost their entire lives and the us sanctions. The problem is not sanctions, the problem is our government, we have the problem, corruption. This campus have been one of the main sources of dissent in a country where free speech is limited. Those people, the government people, they will use the benefits that come from the usa to improve themselves. The leadership now needs to show its committed to reform but the main hope here is the renewed ties with the us will help sudan emerge from the shadows. Tomi oladipo, bbc news, khartoum. Before last years Us Democratic national convention, few had heard of khizr khan or his sons story of service. But after an impassioned speech that led to a public feud with donald trump, all that changed. Now he is the author of a new book. Hes been speaking to rajini vaidyanathan, who began by asking for his view on the recent row between President Trump and the widow of a us soldier who died in niger. I have been saddened by the political expediency that this sad, tragic moment which should be dignified in privacy and restraint should be the call of the day, that you extend the courtesy, condolence and dignity to the family and you provide them privacy so that they can grieve and be stronger instead of making it so public for the purpose of political expediency. Nothing else. Just for that purpose. That saddens me and the behaviour of the president and his advisers had been just not right. That is not the way america treats its gold star families. Let me ask you, have you even read the United States constitution . Applause you turned you turned the memory of your son into a cause in a way after you spoke at the dnc, youve written a book now, khizr khan, an american family, why did you decide to go so public . Obviously you gave the Convention Speech but to write a whole book about it as well . We were at charlotte airport, a couple approached us, mrs and mr khan, there are so many questions we want to ask you, why dont you write a book and answer all those questions . The thought was made by them in our mind and we discussed and we talked about how there would be a lot of exposing personal matters, our private life. But then this sentiment of being grateful to the blessings, to the goodness, to the dignity is that we have received, it would be appropriate to show the spirit of immigration, what brought us here, what has kept us here. I really passionately remember and very clearly and vividly remember that moment when i became citizen of the United States, how i entered, because the environment where i grew up, the country where i grew up, i did not have all these dignities, freedom of speech, freedom to express myself, freedom to religion, i did not have all of that. I went to the court room, without having these dignities, i took the oath of citizenship and a piece of paper is given to me. To the rest of the world that maybe a piece of paper but that meant so much to me. That you feel about the current discussion around immigration . We find ourselves in the debate because of the incompetence of and competency of the policymakers. Bring so many people from these countries, bring these qualifications to fill these jobs. This chaos can be overcome by having immigration policy. Criticising the vulnerable communities that contribute to the station, most immigrants are contributing members of this society. That is proof of the incompetence see